Friday, December 07, 2007

My non-blogging life has been, sad to say, intruding on my MZone time of late. My apologies. But, alas, sometimes things can't be helped. Thus, below is one of my favorite posts from the "Best of the MZone" archives until I can get back on track.

Thanks for reading,

Yost

BEST OF THE WORST COLLEGE FOOTBALL BLOGS

This is the first in an occasional series on the M Zone where we highlight the Best of the Worst College Football Blogs the Web has to offer. We start with a classic.

It's April, 2005. You're such a big college football fan, you can't wait for the fall to start your college football blog. It must be started now. Today. In the spring. You simply have too much to say before September rolls around.

So, you adopt the moniker PoDunkU and try to think of a name for your blog. And think and think and think, you do. Because the name is key. Without a good name, people won't be enticed to show up, read and comment. So you think some more and come up with a beauty. But it's so good, you figure it must be long gone. Some other college football fan surely must have snared it long before your April 2005 foray into the blogosphere. Slowly you type your name choice into Blogger and - Holy shit! - it worked! You somehow, someway got it: College Football Fanatics. Beware Deadspin. Look out Every Day Should Be Saturday. With a name like this, cyberfame, glory and a million hits a day are just around the corner.

In a state of euphoria and on a creative roll, you come up with another dandy for your sub-headline: All Football all the time! Which only makes sense. I mean, you're a college football fanatic, for cryin' out loud. There aren't enough hours in the day for all the football all the time that you're going to be blogging about.

College Football Fanatics: All Football all the time!

Wait. Something's not right. Something's...off. But what? Then it hits you like a Woody Hayes sucker punch in the Gator Bowl: the exclamation point after your sub-headline. Just one? No. You need two. No, fuck that. Three. Three exclamation points. Anything less and you wouldn't be a college football fanatic, would you now?

There. Now it was perfect. Like Captain and Tennille, the two to be forever joined as one.

With your sweet name now safely secured, you sit down to write your first entry. The date, April 8, 2005. Even writing that first entry, you just know someday folks will look back on this day the same way Silicon Valley looks back on the moment Google came online. It will be like the day Hewlett and Packard cleaned the shit out of their garage to start HP. It will be like the time MicroSoft first illegally put another company out of business using its monopoly. Yes, April 8, 2005. A date which would live in blog - dare you say sports? - history.

You decide to start small at CollegeFootballFantatics.blogspot.com. No big or multiple posts. Not on the first day. Just a quick simple blurb talking about the 2005 Florida Gators. Your team. By the time the 10,000th visitor stops by on day two, then you'll really begin cranking out the posts. They will spew forth like water over Niagara Falls, flowing from your magical keyboard unabated. Remember, we're talking "All football all time time!!!"

And thus, with this screenshot below, capturing the moment for all to see, a shining star of the Internet was born. College Football Fanatics was here. And sports fans everywhere rejoiced saying, "PoDunkU, lo' thy name is genius!"

But, sadly, it was not to be. After that single solitary post of pure, unadulterated brilliance, PoDunkU packed up his laptop and disappeared into the cyber ether. Never to post on College Football Fanatics again.

Some speculate, like Orson Wells after CITIZEN KANE, his genius spent on that first post, PoDunkU had nothing left to give. But what he did give reverberates to this day, almost a year later.

"Hey, I'd be lying if I said CollegeFootball Fanatics wasn't the inspiration for our site," said M Zone founder Yost. "What we try to do - and fail most days - is live up to the bar PoDunkU set. But it's tough. His site, even though it was only one post, was like that first Hootie and the Blowfish CD: Flawless. So how do you follow up perfect? You don't. At least I guess that's what PoDunkU thought."

Thus, with the great name, the brilliant sub-headline and the most auspicious debut since TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, CollegeFootballFanatics...All Football all the time!!! was no more. But the memory, oh the sweet memory, lives on to this day. A memory and also a burden. A burden of expectations. Which all of us who write about college football and put up pictures of semi-naked ASU cheerleaders try to live up to each and every time we post.

96 comments:

Having said that, what are your favorite college football blogs? I've got the obvious ones down - EDSBS, mgoblog, AOL fanhouse, even RBUAS - but I'm looking for a few more to add to my required reading. Any suggestions?

No, I don't think so; no. PoDunkU was a man who got everything he wanted and then lost it. Maybe "College Football Fanatics: All Football all the time!!!" was something he couldn't get, or something he lost. Anyway, it wouldn't have explained anything... I don't think any blog can explain a man's life. No, I guess College Football Fanatics: All Football all the time!!! is just a... piece in a jigsaw puzzle... a missing piece.

That's all he ever wanted out of life... was love. That's the tragedy of PoDunkU. You see, he just didn't have any to give.

Ironically, one the comments on the post, the only other one besides spam, is the website http://www.collegefootballfanatics.com/, who makes fun of the blogger for his only one post. Yet, the home page of .collegefootballfanatics.com hasn't been updated since June of 2007.

I guess it's a bit of a stretch, but, in a related story, the pot called the kettle black today.

From the Detroit News: "Kirk Ferentz will not be the next head coach at Michigan. Ferentz, who has been the Iowa coach since 1999, is no longer being considered by Michigan's seven-person search committee to replace Lloyd Carr, multiple sources said Wednesday".

Of course this could be completely incorrect- that Mutliple Sources guy has been spewing a lot of BS lately. According to him Jim Grobe is staying at Wake, too, but that has yet to be confirmed.

Stoops ain't coming. Miles signed his extension today. Grobe is staying at Wake. The Nut went to Ole Miss (not that you wanted the drama).

Dorrell is looking. Maybe he would do better in A2 than LA.

I realize that UM has the all-time win record. That means going back to before cars and only a couple of teams played football (I know, a record's a record). I said that to say this: In the modern era (1950's forward) Oklahoma is the dominant win program. They are at the top of the "elite coaching jobs" scale if that's your criterion. Stoops would have to be after more money to jump from the Okie program to UM. Other than money it would have to be the challenge or something else personal with him and I wouldn't know what that could be. Better keep looking Wolverines. Unless you're with the MGoBlog crowd and still think Miles is coming regardless of reality.

Yeah whets, never understood the Stoops thing, it's a lateral move for him. Just as it would be with Urban Meyer, or Miles (if he hadn't been from here) or anybody already at a big time program. And by big time I mean somewhere with either the tradition, history of winning, or recent *cough* semi- *cough* success we've had.

Headline from the Free Press: "Brian Kelly, Cincinnati AD to talk contract; coach says he wants a Big East deal, not a U-M one

In related news, my kinda cute but syphallitic neighbor stopped by and said she has a date so not to wait up. I found this considerate, as it will help me conserve all that energy I was expending by showing no interest in her.

I think the less we hear the more it favors Miles. BM will continue his "search", Miles doesn't have to contend with questions between now and the game, then Boom!- they announce within a week after the NC. Especially if LSU wins. Our fanbase will be going ape shit if this happens, either way. Not saying we should hire him, just that it's a definite possibility.

The Kelly article only says that he doesn't expect UM (or tosu or ND) money while coaching at Cincy. It doesn't say he wouldn't consider UM. Of course, there doesn't seem to be any indication of interest on our end in either Kelly (or Peterson for that matter). Although, Martin does seem to be politely handling them one at a time, so who knows who's next in line.

Since the fashion seems to be to throw out whatever random, pipe dreams come to mind, I humbly sumbit Tony Dungy, Phil Jackson, Barry Melrose and Joe Torre. How about Tom Brady?

"If" the Miles scenario should play out the way you suggest would that not open tUM to on-going criticism concerning Miles' morality (all Michigan Men shudder)? To hop to tUM after saying he was going to be LSU's coach for a long time would be a knife in the back of every LSU fan.

In my opinion, this would put him on a moral par with the average Michigan fan's view of the Sweater Vest (which, of course, I don't agree with). The variables are different but the moral baseline is the same.

It would leave Miles and UM's program open to barbs such as "Les Mcknife in the back Miles" or "Les ethical Miles per gallon". I'm not very clever, but you get the point.

wetrock,get the point that you're not very clever?? or was there another point?

seriously, the post game "we might get Les yet" thread is almost as sad as the "we never wanted" crowd will be when Ron English gets the job. coming to grips w/ incompetence bred of arrogance never is easy.

case in point, Yacht Boy Bill spent months courting Les Miles, and when the day came, he went sailing. didn't return Bass's call, and hides behind the "i agreed" not to call excuse while apparently never reading the paper, having missed LSU's "yeah, he can call his agent anytime" quotes that everyone else read.

then, Yacht Boy goes to NY, talks w/ Schiano for 5 hours, and offers him the job. all, mind you, w/ out ever contacting Rutgers to ask permission to speak to Shiano in the first place.

so???? Yacht Boy didn't call Miles' agent because he honored the "wait" request of LSU, but offered the job Shiano w/ out ever talking to his school?

Martin's story on he went after Miles is inconsistent w/ the story of how he went after Shiano. barriers/protocols/arrangements cited as reasons we didn't get Les weren't even in the discussion, let alone a consideration in approaching Shiano. but at the end of the day, the same result.

so is Martin just stupid and incompetent? certainly seems so. of the possible candidates left- the pickings are slim. we are approaching the point that any hire will now be a disappointment- how much of one being the only question. so, you conclude, martin blew this.

or is he an evil genius?

we all know Lloyd wanted DeBord or English to get the job (it was said that the Emporer Tiberius chose Caligula as his heir because having been so unpopular of a ruler during life, he wanted at least to be popular in death and thus provided for a new ruler who would be so disliked that people would finally appreciate what a good ruler Tiberius had been after all).

on the heels of Lloyd's retirement, an announcement of hiring English (or a lesser known coach from an unheralded school) would have created an effect amongst the alums similar to the storming of the Bastille. now? the disappointment of missing both Les (the "gung ho, we want Bo" crowd's choice) and now Shiano (the more upscale, polished crowd's choice), there are few big names left and our expectations have flattened out.

to the extent Martin always planned to promote from w/in? this is worked out perfectly. in a weird way i hope that's true. because if he really wanted to hire someone else and this is how he handled it? yeeech.

You make my head hurt. I did appreciate the history tidbit about BM and/or Tiberius though: dark, brooding, enigmatic, intelligent, cunning, a reign of contradictions.

Other than that, I have no idea what you're talking about. Guess that proves my "not so clever" point.

I just want to know what's the moral difference between Miles and Tressel (in the average UM fan's mind) if Miles were to give LSU the finger after saying he was their coach for a long while when signing the extension.

I could care less who the boys in blue hire.

The only dog I have in the fight is the apparent moral quandary posed if Miles is hired. To me, that is interesting.

But, Wetbuck - what if Miles already told the LSD AD that he's leaving but wil stick around for the MNC game, and they agree that Les signing the contract would take folks' mind off the whole UM job knowing darn well that the buyout clause if Les quits doesn't apply to UM?!?

I don't have "moral" qualms with Tressel. Do most UM fans? For me, it's more of the transitive propoerty. Tressel=tosu, tosu=dislike.

IMHO, Miles taking the job after all that bluster would mean, Miles=Saban. To me, that's even worse. But to answer Whetstone's question, if Miles really does end up here (which I don't buy for a minute), then yes, I'd say we loose any moral highground we may have once enjoyed.

If there are backroom deals between LSU, Miles and UM that is open for discussion. My point is that the LSU faithful aren't privy to that information and have been led to believe that Miles is staying for awhile.

I don't agree with that, Jim. He's made it known that he wants to be at UM. If this all a cover up so he can get the most outta his team in the NC game then I'm fine with that. I wouldn't want to mess with his chance to win a NC. Not at all Saban-esque if he comes to UM after the NC game IMO.

His language was not at all equivocating. Are you really okay with him *lying* to his team just to make sure they play well? That's a little manipulative to me (and by 'a little,' I mean extremely). And if this really was the plan all along (and Martin is in on it), then these sham interviews make us look even worse than people think they do now. This all seems incredibly far-fetched.

Honestly, if his statements have still resulted in this kind of speculation and talk, then what would have been the harm in just saying, "I will not discuss any of this until after the season." If this really is how he chose to get through the NC game, I'd call that cowardly.

Whets,I for one have no qualms with Coach Tressel from a moral standpoint and speak of The Sweatervest with nothing but respect 364 days a year. I'll elaborate on that later, but I finally got busy at work so I can't author every other comment.

We'll have to agree to disagree, Jim. Martin's shitty handling and Herbstriet's bullshit put him in a bad spot. Even today he's gushing about how much he loves UM. He wouldn't be leaving for gobs more money like Saban - he'd be going where he's wanted to be all along.It's obviously not as cut-and-dried as we may be making it appear but to put him with the likes of Saban when everyone with even remote interest in CFB knows he wants to be at UM is a little over the top.

Well said, but whether it's money or something you really want (the Michigan job), both are idols if you're willing to sell your character to attain them. I think that's the point of the Miles = Saban comment. Both coaches "appear" to value things more than their character.

Katie! Hey Katie! Wake up sleepyhead! No, we don't have a coach, but there is a little man-candy on ESPN's front page for you. Some healing to get you through all of our rambling conjecture.

That having been said:

I have never had a problem with Tress and his morals. Do i like giving my Buckeye friends shit about Troy taking money? Sure. About what's his name trying to pick up a hooker? (Come on dude, you're a football player on one of the most worshiped teams in the world. You should never have to pay for it. Unless you have really bad halitosis, then all bets are off.) And "Gettin' My Goose On?"- always one of my favorite pastimes.

The reality of the situation is this: Any college coach is charged with taking young men and helping guide them to be responsible adults. He looks parents in the eye and says "You can trust me with your child". All the while he must fight against boosters who want access, agents who want to make a buck, the general stupidity of the 18-22 year old male, and young women who don't always make decisions that may be right for them. (Seriously dude, I'm sure there's a booster that'll buy you a tic-tac?!! Jeebus.) Multiply that by 100 kids, the pressure of Alums, etc. and you can't fault the job the guy's done. He's the Sweatervest, not infallible.

As for Miles = Saban: I don't think it's close. Miles has never said "I will not be the coach at Michigan". He met his wife in A2, had his first child in A2, learned to coach in A2- you get the idea. What ties did Saban have to Miami or Alabama? Miles has made no secret of the fact that he would coach in The Big House if it was offered. In the mean time he has a responsibility to his players and school- to do his best while he's there. So if he leaves, it won't be for the almighty dollar. Maybe in your mind there isn't a difference, but in my mind there is. A little sketchy? Yes, but still different than flat out lying and chasing the cash.

LOL. Well, my guy bends noble morsels of truth, and everyone else's guy is a dirty rotten scoundrel not capable of truthiness on his most bestest day.

I'm not saying it's right, but it's obvious Miles' wants the UofM job. He said so in his interview today. He has simply not been offered the job. He hasn't kept it a secret. What he has done is make the best of the situation he's been put in. He has told his guys he'll be there, but he's never said he wouldn't take the Michigan job f they offer. It's the classic Scorpion and Frog tale.

As for Saban, he said "I'm not going to be the Alabama coach." Then, amazingly enough he was abducted by aliens and returned with no memory of his previous statement. That doesn't make him a Scorpion, that makes him a Black Widow who seduces the frog and then bites it's head off because his ego says it should.

And once again I'm not saying it's right, but i can see the conundrums coaches can face.

And let's not forget- History is written by.....wait for it......The Victors.

Clarrett is a long lost punchline/tragedy, but tOSU's National Championship still stands. Two or three years from now it'll be long forgotten if Miles comes (and wins). At this point the majority of our fanbase is tired of being noble. Sad, but we'd rather win. Not at all costs( recruiting violations, etc.), but for the cost of a little moral egg on our face- i think we'd gladly write that check.

w'buck - I don't think LSU fans will be so disappointed when MIles leaves. Sure he may very well get them a national title in a few weeks, but unless he's very rude in what he does on the way out the door, I think it will be a pretty mutual parting.

Lysa - the Ball State coach that loses more than he wins plays a lot of big schools for cash. Look at his record in the MAC, against good I-AA schools, and weaker Div I schools to get an idea of how he coaches with relatively little talent in the MAC at Ball State.

Joshua! False Start! You obviously know nothing about man candy, cropped bust shots of guys in their helmets, does not make man candy!!!! :o) (and yes, I went to ESPN to check, now does that make me gullible?) I am watching AppState beat up a little on Richmond right now!

I like Scrubby Colt :o) I would love to see him win the Heisman! (particularly over Tebow)

Just to weigh in on this Miles thing. IF (notice BIG IF) Miles ends up at Michigan. It will be a difficult pill for me to swallow. I personally do not approve of how he handled the situation. So LSU tells you the morning of the SEC championship to decide and if you are leaving, you can't coach that game tonight? That would be called Bullshit! Not a chance in hell that would have happened, that was purely posturing on the LSU AD and they would not have followed through on it. And if they did, Miles would not have looked like the bad guy here, LSU's AD would. (and they still do) What about being honest, he did NOT know if he was going to Michigan, why not say to LSU, "Hey, I will talk to them next week and see what they are thinking, but I have not made a decision yet, today, I am the coach at LSU and I will do all I can to represent LSU well" (or something like that) That to me would have had more integrity. THEN come out for your press conference and blast the media for stirring the pot on a day that it should not have been stirred. Basically say the same thing to the medial. NO agreement has been reached, I will talk to Martin after this game and see if he has an offer that I find acceptable, I will tell you that it will take a lot for me to leave this great place and today, I am here coaching my damn good football team, so put a sock in it."

Ooooh T-9, saved by the bell. I never would've let you live that one down.

Yeah, I thought that might not be the best man-candy, but I made you look! As for God- err, Mr. Brady, I'm just hoping to meet him, and thus Giselle, and thus Marisa Miller. That's the reason I own bradyisgod.com. I just hope she can talk football.

"I am the head coach at LSU. I will be the head coach at LSU," Miles said Saturday. "I have no interest in talking to anybody else."

" … I'd love to help them. But I'm not going there. It saddens me at times. I can't be at two places. I've got a great place. I'm at home."

"There's no wiggle room," Miles said. "I just want you to know. It's very difficult for me to take another job if I'm not talking to anybody, and I said that. I'm very fortunate to represent LSU. It's a great place. My family is happy. ... We have great support. It's a special place. I'm glad to be home."

I don't want to belabor this point, but what am I missing? Les has stated, in no uncertain terms and on multiple occasions that he is not going to be the coach at Michigan. If he pulls a reversal, how is this different? I could just as easily say that Saban saw the writing on the wall, realized the pros were not the place for him and ran home to the open arms of his true love...college football.

whoa- never said I'd date the woman, just said she's on my "Do it for the story" list. If you need further explanation of exactly what that list is, let me know, but I'm confident you can figure it out. Just imagine sitting around having beers with a few buddies when one mentions matter-of-factly "Did I ever tell you guys about the time....."

And Jim, if you listen to todays interview, it makes all of that sound VERY hollow.

does anyone know if the Wolverines are even practicing? like is this team even preparing for Florida as the Gators make plans to send the Wolverine program back to the stoneages...someone tell Lloyd to forget about finding a new coach and get his ass back on the field...

I am sure that the Wolverines are practicing. I am certain that this group of men wish to end their season (and Carr's) in the best light possible. Simply because the Michigan fan base seems to have imploded does not mean that Michigan Football has followed suit.

From the AP:For a school still talking about its stunning upset of Michigan, Appalachian State has more reason to celebrate. The Mountaineers are a win away from an unprecedented third straight national championship, thanks to their record-breaking quarterback.

Armanti Edwards rushed for 313 yards and four touchdowns and threw for 182 yards and three more scores as Appalachian State advanced to the Football Championship Subdivision title game with a 55-35 win over Richmond Friday night.

In Satuday's A2 News, there's a sotry & editorial that both lay it out more clearly. They basically spin that last Saturday's fumbling of the negotiations w/ Les weren't a fumble at all. Instead, a fair number of former players (& others close to the program) think Martin has let Lloyd & Brandon steer the search away from Les & worked to prevent him from getting the job. Further, Saturday's mismanagement wasn't mismangement but part of the scheme to move Les out.

That's what I was, more or less trying to say. Now that someone else said better, it's less of a theory & more of a probability.

Worse then the plot to kill Les, it may turn out the second shoe to fall will be that they really plan to promote DeBord or English. The "search" may really have never been to find a coach. Its purpose may have all along to not find a coach. Leaving internal promotion as the only option.

That's waht Lloyd has always wanted. God help us if that's what we get.

In a vacuum of good information, this is the kind of thing that invariably pops up. Say what you will about Lloyd as a coach (at least in his later years), but he's too much of a stand up guy for this kind on nonsense. It just doesn't scan. There's also something sad an defeatist about it.

Doing a hard 90 degree turn and careening into another subject, did you read the flap about Penn State students dressing up as Virginia Tech shooting victims for Halloween. They're having quite a year also.

I'm not taking shots at you. Shit happens. If Miles was Martin's top choice, he probably could have handled it better. I don't know about who called who when, but I don't see anything wrong with BM waiting until Sunday to talk and I don't see anything wrong with LSU offering their own coach a lucrative extension. If Miles really wanted the job, he could have waited a couple of days before shooting his mouth off. I don't know what Schiano's deal was. Maybe he thought he wasn't ready? Michigan is a big stage to fail on. Who knows?

I don't know if there is upside to last week and I don't think Martin is without fault, but there are candidates out there. Kelly, Tedford, Peterson, Martin and others are all still out there.

Man, how did we get here? Looks like the "Down in Front" Bluehairs are the same ones running this search. Heaven help us all.

Prediction: Les will be coach at U of M (but maybe not the next one) with one possible exception: If the other person they could hire wins HUGE, ala Sweatervest style. Mediocrity will keep the bad blood flowing and that next guys doesn't have a chance if he doesn't absolutely kick ass. Dierdorf and all the rest of those players are ticked now, if they bring in someone who wins even on a Lloyd level he won't last. What a debacle.

Aside from fan base speculation, is there proof that Carr is obstructing the search? I believe that he has far too much integrity to do such a thing. This implosion of the fan base seems to be hurting our reputation more than anything else. I have been in a position of authority and the people I have led never knew the entire story of things, there are just some things that need to be kept quiet. One thing that Michigan has been is a program of integrity, I doubt that has changed. When is it time to trust the process? Just because the children didn't get exactly what they hoped for, doesn't mean that is what they should have gotten. Patience. Trust. And for goodness sakes, how about a little respect for those who have done the best job that they could to date?? Sorry, I am tired of the stories (and they are stories, we do not know the truth) and the media is sucking it dry and playing off fan speculation, that is poor journalism. Sorry for the rant. (it is not directed at anyone, just my opinion.)

On the plus side, I think we're the only ones who know we're imploding with rampant speculation. I'm not worried about the general fan, the rift within the program with former players is a bit worrisome though. And Carr doesn't get where he is without having an ego of some sort. He's a tough dude, don't think he'd just roll over if he's that opposed to Miles.

And how do we know if he is opposed to Miles? From everything I have read, it is pure speculation. All of these articles in the media (most generated by the fan base/former players etc, the rest generated by journalist who would love to help put Michigan in a bad light) are feeding the mass hysteria. I do believe that all of Carr's actions to date have shown that he does not have an incredibly huge ego, he has done what is best for Michigan, always. IF (big IF) he is opposed to Miles, I would be willing to bet that he knows something that we don't know. Which is also something we will never know because people who understand respect for others would never discuss their own personal opinions about someone else. Again, trust in the process. Do we believe in the leadership of our program? If not, then there are proper channels to voice that concern. Feeding mass hysteria is not one of them. Again, this is not directed specifically at anyone, particularly not you Joshua, I am just having the conversation.

Jim, Didn't mean to omply you were. Sometimes when I post from the crackberry, I write "short" & choppy- and I sound more terse than I mean to.

Katie, et al,

First, I don't share your faith in Lloyd's integrity, but even if I did, there's a lot of evil done by men of integrity. Assuming Lloyd considers his first loyalty to the U, how hard would it be for him to rationalize. Derailing Les IF he really believed it was best for the school?

But let's leave Lloyd out of it. Whatever he has or hasn't done, it's Martin's job to hire a coach. Whoever has influenced him is also his responsibility.

Let's also skip the speculation & rumor. Let's just look at what Martin has done & said.

He didn't return Bass's calls last Saturday. He says he didn't because of his agreement to not to Les until after the championship game.

How is it that Martin is the only person in the world that missed the numerous news reports that Bertman said there was no limit to speaking to Bass? It's Martin's job to know these things. Whatever else may have happened or influenced him, Martin not knowing he could talk to Bass, is pure incompetence. Any of us we be fired for so being so ignorant of so important of facts pertinent to our job. There's no exucse for that- that he was sailing instead just makes him appear allof in addition to incompetent.Also, his behavior has been inconsistent. He stalled talking to Les after his discussion w/ Bertman, but he sought out, interviewed, and then offered the job on the spot to Shiano, w/out ever contacting Rutger's AD. He followed one protocal for approaching Les, another for Shiano.

In short, he looks like he doesn't know what he's doing. When you sweep away all the rumor about motive and interference, he still looks inept.

And the future? Sure there are other options. I hope we have a plan for talking to the other attractive candidates. I admit that a fair part of my defeatism is due to unsubstantiated rumors about those prospects. However, even when I look @ just the facts, I am not hopeful. What I have seen so far doesn't indicate he's going to suddenly turn his act around.

SIC, I understand what you are saying. I really do. However even what you are saying is not the full story. Did Martin actually OFFER the job to Shiano? To me it sounded like he gave a positive nod, but certainly not a full blown offer, Shiano (as also reported) simply used Michigan to make himself look better after a not so great season. I am not a fan of Martin and I never have been, so I am not defending so much as simply saying, why do we have to know the details of all of this, when the partial details get expanded into things that they really are not, which feeds the mayhem. I am sure I sound rather PollyAnna-istic, which is not my intention. I suppose I wish to have some faith in the system. Aside from the fact that I can do very little about this process. As a student, I would say I have some voice and could most certainly share that with the appropriate person. We will never know everything that happened. Solely blaming Martin, doesn't wash with me, I do believe that Miles, LSU and most certainly Herbie at ESPN have some blame in what transpired. I doubt many of us can fathom the amount of self control it must take to be on the hot seat that the Michigan AD is on, I guess when it comes down to it, I would prefer to support the system and voice my concerns in an appropriate fashion, versus adding to the already tarnished imagine. (and please don't read that as I think you are in the wrong, as I said, just voicing my opinion and hoping maybe to create a shiny spot on grandma's silver that has taken on quite a bit of tarnish in the last few weeks. :o) I love Michigan and I will always love Michigan, so it doesn't feel good to hear all the negative.

Katie,As with anything and anyone, our self-importance in this situation is aggrandized. Ever think "I can't wear that outfit, I just wore it last week"? Or maybe buy a car and start noticing there are a lot more of them around than there were before? Chances are the people around you won't remember what you wore last week, and now you just notice those cars more. I think that our perspective- as M fans- is that we look a lot worse than we actually do.

*Paragraph break for easier reading....*

My dad (a State fan) always accuses me of being arrogant as a Wolverine fan. Not from the perspective of poor sportsmanship, but from the perspective of thinking we are simply better. ( And I do think that, but that's a different discussion I think the national media is paying attention, but the average fan, not so much. I think we think people are paying a lot more attention than they probably are.

Getting back to the subject of arrogance, I think we (and by "we" i mean the search committee) have treated this search like anyone should want to come here simply because we're Michigan. To offer Schiano less than he's making at Rutgers? No one thought he'd actually come anyway, based on his family ties, the success he's had, etc. so you offer him LESS? How does that work? The only explanation is arrogance or sandbagging. Or arrogance and incompetence. I sincerely hope it's the former.

Also, I don't expect for those of us who are students/alumni to be kept in the know, but to have people like Dan Dierdorf kept in the dark and freaking out- that's gonna leave a rift, and THAT could hurt the program if we don't hire a winner.

A few side notes: PollyAnna-istic: not only highly descriptive, but fun too say as well.

God's numbers today: 32/46 for 399yds, 4tds, 0 ints. Damn it feels good to be a gangsta.

Joshua, I'll bite... that Michigan is arrogant take is getting old. For example, there was someone in here who posted recently mocking Michigan; this person also runs a Moo U. blog.

If you were to look at his blog it's nothing but Michigan sux. Rarely an article about MSU.

When I called him on his devotion to hurling insults at the opposition instead of supporting his own institution, I got the arrogant label thrown at me. Whatever.

It's a bunch of rubbish. Srudoff pulls that bullshit regularly too... If anyone at any other school shows some pride, it's okay. But if a Michigan Man (or Woman) shows some school spirit, they're accused of being arrogant. I'm not buying it anymore!

--------Freep.com:Saints coach Sean Payton told the New Orleans Times-Picayune on Friday that he has not been contacted by Michigan officials about the head coaching job. "I'm extremely excited to be the head coach of the New Orleans Saints. I know people have heard that before from other head coaches in our league, but trust me, this is where I want to be."

Payton -- in the second year of a four-year, $8-million deal -- was asked if he wants to officially remove his name from consideration for the Michigan job. "I don't think I have to officially remove my name," he said. "There's nothing to it."---------------

Applying the standard that has been established to UM coaching candidates from the state of Louisiana...say hello to the next coach of the Wolverines.

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